Xiao Man selected the finest spirit plants and stuffed them into the belly of the golden crow. She then brushed the chicken with oil, plucked spirit leaves to wrap the bird, coated it with multicolored mud, and tossed it into the still-glowing embers of the fire. She buried it with ash.
The Glutton looked at the burning fire, then at Xiao Man. "Didn't you say roasted chicken? Is this how you roast chicken?"
"Isn't this roasted chicken?" Xiao Man retorted. "Roasting over fire, roasting in fire, it's all roasting."
"If it doesn't taste good..."
"If it doesn't taste good, I'll eat it myself," Xiao Man lazily finished the sentence. "As a Glutton who has tasted all the delicacies in the world, you wouldn't mind such a roasted chicken."
"If you steal my chicken, I will swallow you whole," the Glutton said calmly, his expression unchanged. "Humans, I have eaten quite a few."
"I'm afraid you wouldn't digest me," Xiao Man poked at the fire. "Do you plan to stay in Mount Duan'e forever?"
"Cangxuan is about to be in chaos," the Glutton stated calmly. "This Mount Duan'e won't be peaceful for long."
Xiao Man didn't reply. She had been sent here, with the intention of having these demonic beasts kill her. To ensure their objective was met, they would surely send people to investigate. Once they discovered she was still alive, the demonic beasts of Mount Duan'e, and even humans, would likely be implicated.
"I have brought trouble here."
"Brought trouble?" The Glutton pondered. "Here, the law of the jungle is the only principle. There is no such thing as bringing trouble. If you don't want to be eaten, you can only eat others. May I ask, who have you offended?"
"If only I knew who I offended," Xiao Man spread her hands innocently. "I don't even know who my enemy is, yet I inexplicably ended up here."
"Why did you end up here?"
"Oh, I let the Demon Lord out."
The Glutton's expression changed instantly. "You let the Demon Lord out? He's not dead yet?"
"The Demon Lord is an ancient demon, after all. His vitality is immense; he wouldn't die so easily."
The Glutton lowered his gaze. The Demon Lord was out. It seemed Cangxuan could no longer be a safe place. With the Demon Lord's resurgence, Cangxuan's balance would be shattered, and heavenly punishment would surely descend. Mount Duan'e was no longer a safe haven.
"How much longer until it's ready?"
"Haste makes waste," Xiao Man added more firewood. "If the heat isn't enough, the meat won't be tender. If the heat is too much, it will be dry. To have the most tender and delicious roasted chicken, one must have patience."
"Patience, I have. I just fear you may not have much time," the Glutton looked up at the sky. "The exit has opened."
Xiao Man's gaze flickered. "The exit has opened, but I can't go out. Those who want to kill me will surely guess that if I am alive, I will try to escape through the exit. They only need to lie in wait at the exit."
The Glutton sneered. "Not entirely foolish."
"If I were to run out as soon as the exit opened, it would be a sure path to death," Xiao Man said unhurriedly as she poked the fire. "That's why I came here."
"Since they will send people to guard the exit, they will also send people here. That's why I said your time is running out," the Glutton rested his hands on the ground, looking up at the sky. "This peaceful place will also be destroyed."
"No rush." A pleasant, faint aroma of meat wafted through the air. "It's almost ready. For a good dish, the heat is very important."
"I can already smell the meat," the Glutton closed his eyes, sniffing the aroma in the air. This scent was different from the lamb Xiao Man had roasted earlier.
Xiao Man took out another jar of wine. "Beggar's chicken with lotus leaf wine, they are a perfect match."
"Do you have a lot of wine?" the Glutton asked curiously.
"I like to brew wine," Xiao Man said softly. "When my mind is unsettled, I enjoy brewing wine. I also have many friends who appreciate good wine, so I don't have to worry about it not selling."
"Your craftsmanship is good." The aroma of meat grew stronger in the air. Just smelling it made one's mouth water.
Xiao Man scraped away the embers and took out the mud-covered lump, handing it to the Glutton. "Your roasted meat is ready. I should be going now."
The Glutton took it and broke open the mud casing. A rich meat aroma wafted out. The Glutton greedily inhaled the scent and looked up to see Xiao Man walking towards the teleportation array. He tossed a piece of his scale to Xiao Man, who quickly caught it.
"This is a scale from my body. With your exquisite craftsmanship, you must know how to use it. I'll give it to you."
"Thank you. We shall meet again." As she spoke, Xiao Man vanished into the teleportation array.
When Xiao Man was ejected from the teleportation array, she was in mid-air. She immediately summoned Huo Wu. To her surprise, after Huo Wu appeared, it couldn't take flight. The person and the bird fell ungracefully into the river.
It would have been fine if they had just fallen into the river and gotten up, but they couldn't float in the water. Instead, they began to sink to the riverbed!
"Up!" Xiao Man grabbed Huo Wu and threw it ashore, while she herself sank towards the riverbed.
Huo Wu landed on the bank and instantly transformed into human form. "Master."
Xiao Man struggled desperately. No matter how she paddled, she couldn't stay afloat. Instead, she sank rapidly towards the riverbed. There was something wrong with this river. She tried to mobilize her spiritual energy and enter the Tongtian Tower, only to find her spiritual power had vanished. She couldn't enter the Tongtian Tower at all.
Xiao Man covered her mouth, thinking, after crossing mountains and rivers, and wading through seas of corpses, was she going to perish here?
Just then, a man appeared on the bank. He took out a piece of wood and threw it into the river, then leaped onto the wood. He took off a chain from his waist, threw it down, wrapped it around Xiao Man's waist, and pulled her out of the water. He caught her and used the momentum to return to the bank.
"Master..." Huo Wu tried to check on Xiao Man, but found her body becoming transparent and was instantly forced back into the contract space.
The man stared at the disappearing Huo Wu, his eyes narrowing. "Contracted beast. Outsider."
When Xiao Man woke up, she was leaning against a rock. Her outer garment had been removed and was being dried by a nearby fire. A man sat by the fire, dressed in animal skins, with healthy bronze skin. Seeing Xiao Man wake up, he immediately felt her clothes, confirmed they were dry, and then handed them to Xiao Man.
"You saved me. Thank you."
"Outsider, where are you from?" the man asked, turning to poke at a grilled fish.
Xiao Man put on her clothes and tied her loose hair back with a ribbon. "Mount Duan'e."
The man turned back, asking curiously, "Mount Duan'e? What kind of place is that?"
"A place full of demonic beasts."
"Isn't that very dangerous? Why would a young lady like you be in such a dangerous place?" the man inquired, frowning. In his opinion, Xiao Man looked like a frail girl, incomparable to the girls in his village, who were all sturdy and strong. Xiao Man looked like someone who hadn't eaten enough for a long time.